Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

American Beisbol: How Cultural Differences Help Explain Different Approaches To Game Playing, Derek Jackson

Masters Theses

The purpose of this thesis project is to examine the effect of culturally derived game strategies on the success level of players in the game of baseball. Specifically, I look at both the influence of how various Latin American cultures teach the game in order to better ensure success of players at the MLB level versus how the game is taught in the United States and Japan. In this way I develop a feedback model in which these game strategies perpetuate a cycle of enculturation that further reinforces cultural/ethnic identities. In order to accomplish this goal I look at the …

The Internet And Mass Society: Civic Engagement In The Digital Age, Simon J. Purdy

Masters Theses

In this study, the relationship between Internet use and civic engagement is examined. Building off of the work of previous researchers, which has found no clear relationship between Internet use and civic engagement, this analysis attempts to find differences between those who are civically engaged at different levels, in terms of Internet use, types of civic engagement and feelings of being able to affect change through civic engagement. Several hypotheses about this relationship are tested using data collected from undergraduate students at a medium sized Midwestern university with an online survey method. The statistical analysis entails building a series of …

Location And Competitive Strategy In Retail: The Case Of Gamestop In Michigan, Karl P. Schrantz

Masters Theses

The State of Michigan offers a unique retail environment that offers a diverse arena for firms to interact and compete in. The state has many cities of different size and a multitude of retail chains that operate within them. Over the past two decades this competition has become even stiffer with the rapid growth of big box retailers. In spite of this general notion there are often the less known stories of small retailers that have been able to compete and survive big box retailing. This research aims to assess how a smaller retail chain, GameStop in this case, is …

Early Family Ties And Marital Stability Over 16 Years: The Context Of Race And Gender, Terri L. Orbuch, José A. Bauermeister, Edna Brown, Brandyn Dior Mckinley

School for Social Work: Faculty Publications

Spouses' emotional ties to family early in marriage are linked to marital outcomes, but little is known about how these ties affect marital stability and whether these effects vary by race and gender. The present study examines the links between emotional ties to family of origin and in-laws in the first year of marriage and marital stability over the first 16years of marriage. Data were collected as part of a longitudinal study following Black American (n=199) and White American (n=174) married couples. Analyses revealed that perceptions of closeness to in-laws early in marriage were associated with odds of divorce over …

Co-Management And The Fight For Rural Water Justice: Learning From Costa Rican Asadas, Kristin B. Dobbin

Pitzer Senior Theses

Rural communities have, for much of history, been left with inadequate or no water service. This is because the traditional state/private dichotomy of water provision is inadequate for addressing the unique needs of small, isolated communities. Drawing from the Common-Pool Resource literature, co-management arose in recent decades as a solution to address this pandemic of rural water exclusion. In Costa Rica, co-management takes the form of community water associations known as ASADAS. This thesis explores the successes and challenges of ASADAS through the use of three case study communities. Using interviews, surveys, water sampling and national legislation in addition to …

Currents Of Change: An Urban And Environmental History Of The Anacostia River And Near Southeast Waterfront In Washington, D.C., Emily C. Haynes

Pitzer Senior Theses

This thesis analyzes how social and environmental inequalities have interacted throughout Washington, D.C.’s urban and environmental history to shape the Anacostia River and its Near Southeast waterfront into urbanized and industrialized landscapes. Drawing on the principles of environmental justice, urban political ecology, and environmental history, I examine the construction of urban rivers and waterfront space over time. I link the ecological and social decline of the Anacostia River and Near Southeast neighborhood to a broader national pattern of environmental degradation and social inequality along urban rivers that resulted from urban industrialization and federal water management. Finally, I discuss the recent …

Fertile Lands And Bodies: Connecting The Green Revolution, Pesticides, And Women’S Reproductive Health, Sarah M.K. Cycon

Pitzer Senior Theses

Environmentalists, social scientists, and economists have long critiqued the enduring impacts of the Green Revolution’s diffusion of agricultural technologies throughout the Global South. However, largely missing from the myriad analyses is the relationship between those technologies, namely pesticides, and health outcomes. This thesis explores the social and biological mechanisms through which excessive pesticide use culminated into adverse reproductive health outcomes for rural women in the Global South. Drawing together the history of the Green Revolution’s use of DDT, its social and economic impacts, and the biology of pesticide contamination in women’s bodies exposes how the Green Revolution situated women in …

Infants’ Responses To Affect In Music And Speech, Daniel K. Feinberg

Pitzer Senior Theses

Existing literature demonstrates that infants can discriminate between categories of infant-directed (ID) speech based on the speaker’s intended message – that is, infants recognize the difference between comforting and approving ID speech, and treat different utterances from within these two categories similarly. Furthermore, the literature also demonstrates that infants understand many aspects of music and can discriminate between happy and sad music. Building on these findings, the present study investigated whether exposure to happy or sad piano music would systematically affect infants’ preferences for comforting or approving ID speech. Five- to nine-month-old infants’ preferences for comforting or approving ID speech …

The Battle Of Brooklyn: World City And Space Of Neighborhoods., Benjamin C. Shepard

Publications and Research

Throughout Brooklyn, regular people are fighting off the negative dynamics of urban experience, including uneven development, speculative gentrification, displacement, and police brutality long seen in global cities. Yet, little of the global cities literature considers the ways local actors impact global forces shaping world cities. Instead, observers of globalization suggest local actors have been relegated the sidelines as passive spectators of larger social and economic forces. Many wonder, is there a space for agency in global cities? Can regular people shape the dynamics of life in cities? For many, the answer is clearly affirmative. Throughout the borough of Brooklyn, people …

What Do Users Need? Exploring Influences On The Adoption Of Mobile Content And The Differences Among Categories Of Adopters, Janaina Maia Gonzaga De Oliveira

Doctoral

Businesses develop products and services with the goal of earning a satisfactory return on their original investment of time and capital. For their part, consumers seek out products and services that meet a recognized need. However, predicting the adoption rate of any new technology is an inexact science, and some businesses find themselves on the wrong side of the curve. The variables factoring into consumers’ purchasing decisions are manifold and contingent on a wider network of influences. This research suggests that a primary variable that influences consumers’ adoption of a technological innovation (in this case, mobile content) is the perception …

Patron-Driven Acquisition Optimization At Liberty University, Erin Crane, Lori Snyder

Faculty Publications and Presentations

In 2010 Liberty University began a Patron-Driven Acquisition pilot program with ebrary. Since then, the program has grown dramatically. The presenters describe how the library uses past usage data to create a predictive formula for ebook use. New ebook titles were added to the program based on formula selections. Success of the formula was evaluated, and overall the results are positive. The presenters also explain how the library handles the purchasing and cataloging of the ebooks.

The Development Of Differential Object Marking In Spanish-English Bilingual Children, Mariluz Ortiz Vergara

Open Access Theses

In monolingual development, the acquisition of differential object marking (DOM) is completed by three years of age (Rodríguez- Mondoñedo, 2008). However, among bilingual speakers, the development and use of the marker at a young age is less predictable. Spanish marks animate and specific direct objects with the preposition-a; English in contrast does not. Based on previous studies documenting transfer in areas where Spanish and English differ, it was predicted that bilingual children would experience difficulties with the use of the preposition both in matrix and left dislocated sentences (CLLD) (Montrul, 2004, Montrul & Bowles, 2009). This study tested 14 simultaneous …

Information And Interaction Needs Of Distance Students: Are Academic Libraries Meeting The Challenge?, Adelia Grabowsky

Georgia Library Quarterly

One of the trends currently affecting academic libraries is higher education’s expanding use of online instruction and a rising number of totally online degree programs. As libraries have transitioned from primarily print holdings to a growing reliance on electronic formats, access has become more convenient for all, including distance students. However, the greater availability of e-resources can create a disconnect between the materials used by students and the institution that provides those resources, as well as the librarians who serve as instructors and guides. Libraries have struggled to close the gap by reinventing themselves as a ‘third place’ which students …

Using Worldcat Identities, Deborah Van Petten

Georgia Library Quarterly

This article briefly describes how to navigate and use WorldCat Identities.

News - Georgia Library Association Library Photo Contest And 2014 Calendar, Christina Teasley

Georgia Library Quarterly

GLA and GLQ are co-sponsoring a Library Photo Contest. Winning photos will be included in a 2014 calendar that will be a GLA fundraiser sold at GaCOMO. The submission deadline is June 20, 2013.

News - Kennesaw State University, Rita J. Spisak

Georgia Library Quarterly

No abstract provided.

News - Library Council News, Technical College System Of Georgia, Christina Teasley

Georgia Library Quarterly

News from the Technical College System of Georgia.

Senior Shedding: Mortality And Migration Of Seniors Create Vacancies For Gentrifying Neighborhoods, Robert Lycan, Charles Rynerson

Publications, Reports and Presentations

Looks at how vacancies created by deaths and out-migration of seniors and baby boomers facilitates housing turnover or gentrification, referred to as Senior Shedding.

What University Personnel Should Know: Students' Career Confidence, Help-Seeking Stigmas, And Perceptions Of College Career Centers, Anna Woodruff

Honors Projects

Career center professionals face many challenges in providing services to undergraduate students. For example, students may be unaware of offered services (Garner, Rintz, & Valle, 2 20 I I) and therefore underutilize available career center resources. This is a problem because today's society places high value on developing the skills necessary to be successful in employment (Garver, Spralls, & Divine, 2009). Perceived stigma related to seeking career help (Ludwikowski, Vogel, & Armstrong, 2009), low career decision self-efficacy (O'Brien, 2003), and other barriers (Shivy & Koehly, 2002) can prevent students from seeking career services. Two studies were conducted which focused on …

Singing To The Spirits: Cultural And Spiritual Traditions Embodied In The Native American Gourd Dance, Alicia M. Gummess

Honors Projects

In this paper, I provide a brief overview of the history and practice of the Native American Gourd Dance, a traditional ceremony integrating music and dance practiced by Gourd Dance societies in Southern Oklahoma. I examine the reasons behind its popularity and spread to other regions of North America, including the Southwest and the Northern Plains. Gourd Dance performances usually occur in the context of larger ceremonial gatherings called pow wows, in which Native American communities hold dances to celebrate their values and practice their religious beliefs and cultural traditions. Pow wows feature many traditional and more modern Native American …

Displacement In D.C.: A Case Study Of Gentrification And Granger-Causality In Our Nation's Capitol, Will Lawrence

Honors Projects

This study looks at the causal forces behind the social relocation phenomenon known as gentrification. Location theory posits that ever increasing commute times coupled with falling crime rates in the city-center incentivize the high-income population to move from the suburbs to the city, driving up housing prices and displacing the low-income, original residents who live in the city. This paper applies location theory to Washington, D.C. in an attempt to explain the ongoing gentrification process through the displacement of original residents. City-wide data at the neighborhood level for housing prices and crime rates are analyzed to explore the causal relationships …

Snapped Into Focus: Addressing The Challenges Faced By Undocumented Mexican Immigrants In The United States, Nora Peterson '14

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

It is estimated that as of 2010 there are 11.4 million Mexican immigrants living in the United States. This figure represents 30% of the total immigrant population and 62% of the undocumented immigrant population (Ortmeyer and Quinn 2012). Jennifer Carrillo, a resident of the Bloomington-Normal, Illinois community, has represented both sets of statistics throughout the thirteen years that she has resided in the United States.

Russian-Jewish Immigration And The Life Experiences Of Dr. Marina Balina: A Photo Essay, Lauren Henry '14

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

It is easy for many American-born citizens to forget that many people struggle to achieve the same status that they have by birthright. It is also easy to take for granted the fact that Americans have many freedoms and opportunities that people are deprived of in many other places all over the world. Being born in the United States myself, I am no exception to this. After hearing from Dr. Marina Balina about her life and journey to becoming a citizen, I have a new level of respect for immigrants like Dr. Balina and an appreciation for the circumstances that …

American By Citizenship Or American At Heart? An Analysis Of Becoming An “American” As Seen Through The Eyes Of An Indian-American Immigrant, Helen Brandt '14

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

Learning and experiencing the culture of a country for an immigrant is quite different than for someone who has grown up in that country and culture. Most native citizens take the differences for granted, but for immigrants, these variations can cause feelings of alienation in a new culture. Beginning my research, I wanted to learn what becoming an American was like. The end result of my research showed that being an American does not simply mean being born here or acquiring citizenship. It also entails adapting to certain recognizable aspects of the U.S. culture, and one does not need to …

Pierogies To Hamburgers: An Immigration Story, Madeline Cross '13

Outstanding Ethnographic Research Projects

This ethnographic study examines the experiences of an immigrant from Poland through visual media. The process of becoming a citizen, the transition to American culture, and current identity as a Polish American are addressed. The consultant for this ethnography is Agnieszka (Agnes) Kubas who is a Junior at Illinois Wesleyan University. Agnes moved from Poland to America 12 years ago.

Agnes’s immigration story is a culmination of historical and cultural factors that she experienced on a personal level. The three main themes of Agnes’s story were the language barrier, the transition to the American educational system, and the way her …

Why They Rise Up, Or Not: A Study Of Linguistic Minorities And Ethnic-National Mobilization, Yelei Kong

Honors Projects

Most theories of nationalism focus on majority nationalism and do not provide an adequate explanation of the inaction of most ethnic minorities. The first part of this paper adopts the political process model from social movement theory to study the factors that prompt linguistic minorities to mobilize on ethno-national grounds. Using a large-N statistical model with data drawn from the Minorities at Risk (MAR) database, the results indicate that group capacity, a favorable opportunity structure, and strong issue framing facilitate ethno-national mobilization. The second part of the paper employs a most similar system design to compare Uzbek language minorities in …

Caroliniana Columns - Spring 2013, University Libraries--University Of South Carolina

University South Caroliniana Society Newsletter - Columns

Contents:

"A Few Words About Allen Stokes as He Retires as Director of the South Caroliniana Library"..... p.1
Report from the Director..... p.1
Report from the President..... p.3
Letter from the Dean of Libraries..... p.5
University of South Caroliniana Society Presentation to the South Caroliniana Library in Honor of Allen Stokes..... p.6
Lift Every Voice National Forum Presented in May..... p.7
Getting To Know You..... p.8
In Memorium..... p.10
Lieutenant William E. Johnson, Jr., One of "The Immortal Six Hundred"..... p.11
South Carolina's Everyman Artist: The Oscar Jackson "Jak" Smyrl, Jr. Papers..... p.15
Preston Brooks, Charles Sumner, and "The …

Anniversary Invite Spanish

Postville Project Documents

Postcard in Spanish announcing a commemoration of the five-year anniversary of the Agriprocessors immigration raid.

Case Studies Of Emerging/Innovative Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Practices In Improving Employment Outcomes For Individuals With Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities, Robert Burns, Kelly Haines, Elizabeth Porter, Heike Boeltzig-Brown, Susan Foley

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

The Vocational Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (VR-RRTC.org) based at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston partnered with national content experts to identify promising VR employment practices serving people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD). The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), the funding agency,requested an emphasis on identifying promising practices for people with mental illnesses and peoplewith intellectual disabilities/developmental disabilities, and to identify promising practices related to order of selection and the designation of most significant disability. This report provides a summary of four promising VR employment practices for persons with …

Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies Helping People With Psychiatric Disabilities Get Employed: How Far Have We Come? How Far Do We Have To Go?: Case Studies Of Promising Practices In Vocational Rehabilitation, Joseph Marrone, Mary Lynn Cala, Kelly Haines, Heike Boeltzig-Brown, Susan Foley

All Institute for Community Inclusion Publications

The final set of eight promising practices out of the 58 nominated practices are summarized here and then described inmore detail in the appendix. Each descriptive write up can be used independently and provides sufficient detail for review. A note from the VR RRTC Team: These are descriptions of practices in one snapshot of time. We acknowledge that by thetime we are able to produce asummary report, practices may have evolved or modified, and new practices may have emerged. For more specific details or up to date descriptions we advise going to the source, the state VR agencies, directly. We …